Woman who appears constantly 'drunk' says condition has 'destroyed' her life
A woman left with permanent triple vision because of her debilitating condition says it has 'destroyed her life.'
Emilyjane Vernau, 27, from Essex, was diagnosed with epilepsy around seven years ago after she began suffering from hallucinations and 'shaking' seizures.
But this was just the start of her battle with the neurological condition. Over time, things took a turn for the worse and Emilyjane started suffering from rare focal seizures.
It has left her with a permanent triple vision – and has completely stripped the young woman of her independence, having to rely on her parents and partner Conor, also 27, for care.
"Everything was taken away when I was diagnosed - my life just flipped," Emilyjane, who had been training to be a private first aid responder, said.
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Emilyjane started suffering rare focal seizures (Jam Press)
"Everything was taken away when I was diagnosed – my life just flipped" (Jam Press)"I had a career, I used to do first responding but I had my license taken away.
"I had over 40 qualifications and they all just got stripped from me.
"Now, in public, people often think I am drunk because I can't walk straight or because my speech is slurred.
"I have been stripped of everything I knew."
When Emilyjane was first diagnosed with epilepsy at the age of 20, she spent around two years trialling seven drugs to try and control her seizures.
But while she managed to gain back some control of her life, she soon started suffering from unbearable focal seizures around three years ago.
She explained: "The first time it happened and my vision went, I just burst into tears.
"It was so sudden and I could see four or five of everything, I thought I was going blind.
Emilyjane receiving treatment for her 24/7 triple vision (Jam Press)
Her parents and her boyfriend now have to look after her as she is now unable to leave the house without supervision (Jam Press)"They started just being around 10-20 minutes a day, but slowly they got worse and eventually the triple vision was 24/7."
In just a few short years, Emilyjane became practically housebound and is now unable to leave the house without supervision.
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"My mum has to do everything for me, she and my dad are basically my carers," she said.
"I wake up and sometimes I see seven of the same thing, and this happens from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to sleep.
"I sometimes have to be carried upstairs by my partner. If I have a shaking seizure he catches me.
"When I have had to leave the house, I have nearly been hit by cars and I have fallen into roads. This condition affects my everyday life."
The 27-year-old believes her epilepsy was caused by stress from PTSD from bullying in her younger years.
She said: "I was bullied every single day at school because of my ginger hair. I eventually had to get home-schooled because it became too much.
"When my neurologist said the epilepsy was caused by the bullying, I collapsed to the floor.
"There was so much anger and upset based on how much damage they have caused to me.
"Their nasty words and bullying have given me disabilities for the rest of my life.
She believes she is suffering from PTSD from being bullied for her hair at school (Jam Press)"It has destroyed the rest of my life, physically and mentally.
"There is no cure and nothing can be done about it.
"I think about that every day, about what they have done to me, how they have taken my life away."
Despite the mental toll the diagnosis has had on Emilyjane, she says she is now learning to grow with the condition and not let it get her down.
She is currently undergoing tests at the hospital to try and get to the bottom of her epilepsy and hopefully find a cure.
Emilyjane is hoping that by sharing her story she can help raise more awareness about epilepsy and the devastating consequences bullying can have.
She added: "I think a lot of people think that epilepsy is just seizures, but it isn't. I now have four pairs of crutches.
"It's important for people to take five minutes out of their day to read about epilepsy and seizures.
"People die from [this] and it is just as important as a heart attack.
"I think a lot of people get diagnosed with epilepsy because of their past traumas.
"Bullying does cause disabilities, not just mental but physical and bullying is what took my life away."
Epilepsy is a common condition that affects the brain and causes frequent seizures. The NHS says to see a GP if you think you might have had a seizure for the first time. For more information on symptoms and support, please head to the NHS website
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